Selfish Gifts
by rachael-ly
Summary: Buying gifts for others was always difficult, but when Belphegor and Mammon coincidentally decided to buy gifts at the same time, what will happen to the selfish pair?


Royalty.

Utter bullshit.

If all of the noble classes were like _him_, Mammon would pass the opportunity to meet the others that shared that cursed royal blood. But then again, having more than one prince to handle was certainly interesting, but at the same time, difficult. After all, if they were all the same, then what he felt too would be-

"Nonsense." Mammon shook his head as he made his way out of the mall. It was stupid to even think he could find a gift there. It was for, as a certain blonde would say, peasants. But he was already desperate. All other stores he's been too, even the extremely pricey ones, had nothing special. All either too dull or too showy.

Ah…gifts. Not only are they a waste of precious money, it needed effort too. And he was already exerting too much considering it was only for a brat that treated him like a baby.

_A baby._

Mammon looked at his hands, moving them as his eyes continued to observe. Technically he was a baby. A baby doomed to remain so till the curse is lifted.

Taking a shortcut through an alley, Mammon made sure no one was around and slowly began changing his form. He debated with himself for a while, wondering what form it is he should use today. Gender wasn't a necessary subject to ponder about. Male or female. It didn't matter. With a toss of a coin, Mammon placed the burden to fate.

Man = heads.

He made a mental note to himself as the coin continued to enjoy its stay in the air.

Tails.

A woman then.

With that settled he continued his little morphing trick and took the form of a woman in her early 20s. His- or her, hair extended just a few inches below the shoulder, and her breasts gradually increased but still small and partly flat. A thick purple scarf covered her entire neck and a fourth of her face. Her bangs ensured that the only thing that can be seen was her nose. Her garments were just like that of any woman of her form's age at this time of the year- long sleeved dresses with boots and tight pants.

"Now…where to?" He asked himself, as he exited the alley. If this was one of those sappy, romance movies, after a while of searching, the so-called perfect gift will present itself eventually. Sadly this tale didn't begin with a once upon a time and it's definitely not a young maiden's quest to find true love. Ugh.

Yet still, Mammon hoped. That eventually he would find that damned perfect gift waiting to be bought. He rarely bought anything, and yet it proved to be almost impossible. This was frustrating. Too frustrating.

Mammon continued to walk along the streets. Italy was a beautiful place. Surely there was something out there that would prove to be interesting?

* * *

"Shishishi, if I was an evil and greedy baby, what would I like?" Belphegor thought to himself as he looked at his reflection from a shop's window. He was never the one to Christmas shop. Why would he, the prince, bother to give someone a gift? HE's the one who should be receiving them, not the other way around. Plus, it was a waste of money. A thought that rubbed off of the illusionist. Spending time with the arcobaleno was probably not the best of choices. Or maybe it was.

A sly smile formed on the blonde's lips as a thought entered his mind. Mammon.

The illusionist took on one too many forms. Of all the years that he's been with the baby, Belphegor already saw his real form. That of a woman's. A child's. A granny. A gramps. And many more. Even that of a cake. It was just a dare for him to be a cake, who knew he would take it seriously?

Thinking of others was probably not the prince's specialty. He bought gifts before. For special events. But the gifts were for his entertainment. Like that perfume he had given Levi on the man's birthday. Ah, that was priceless. At first, everyone thought it was a just a proper gesture for the prince to give Levi a gift. Especially since the perfume actually smelled magnificent. It wasn't till morning till the poor man notice the effects. Dogs were licking him everywhere. The moment he shouted at them, the dogs barked angrily in unison and chased him. It was the best time for him to wear duck patterned boxers.

For some odd reason, Belphegor wanted a special gift of some sorts for the illusionist. But unlike how he thought it would go, his plan to surprise the baby is going nowhere. He can't even find a gift. Checks would probably be the 'best' gift for him, but there has to be something else, right?

The grin faded and was replaced with a frown. Belphegor grunted at the thought of his plans being a complete failure. That just wasn't like the prince. Things ALWAYS went as he pleases. And he wasn't going to let this be an exception. Even if it did concern Mammon.

* * *

Three hours of walking around, especially in heeled boots, was worse than that time Lussuria tried to dress him up while he took on a form of a girl. The agony on that day was...traumatizing. But this too, along with the dread of all his efforts being wasted with nothing at hand, was bad. Very bad.

It wasn't till a few minutes later when Mammon realized he was being an idiot. The spoiled prince, no matter how childish, was still a prince. He can buy anything that he pleases. Be it the smallest of things, to useless and large ones.

A gift, after all, would be useless.

* * *

Belphegor groaned as he sat on the ground of a small trinket shop. Ignoring the stares that he got. This was stupid. Everything that he was doing from the very beginning was stupid. The only things he knew that Mammon genuinely liked were sweets, and money. And having those as presents is…they're simply not presents!

If this goes on, Belphegor was going to make sure things didn't end well. Blood will be shed. Lots of them.

* * *

Being generous in thought and deed was foreign to both Belphegor and Mammon. Whether it was due to irritation or fate, they both had the same thought. It was time to be selfish.

* * *

Mammon thought long and hard of what HE wanted to give the prince. Something that would benefit him. Or both he and the prince. An imaginary light bulb lit up as he finally made up his mind. He traced his steps from not too long ago, and tried to find that shop that sold long scarves.

And he did find it. The place was as empty as before. It was located in one of the alleyways he passed by earlier. It was a small but decent place that sold scarves of all designs. An enthusiastic girl greeted him as he looked around, "You came back!"

Oh. It was her again. The same girl that kept questioning to whom the gift was addressed for. Mammon reluctantly told her it was for a friend. And when he said it was for a man, the girl giggled as if there was no tomorrow. "I knew you'd come back! After all, scarves like these are meant to be shared. You and your boyfriend would look so cute in them!"

_Yet you haven't even seen him._

Mammon ignored her remark and the 'boyfriend' part. They weren't like that. And will never be.

Sighing, he looked around in search of a particularly dull one. He didn't like patterns that much and anything simpler would be a good change. For the both of them.

Eyes suddenly widening, Mammon took hold of a plain beige scarf. He brushed the cloth to his cheeks, trying to feel if it was fit for wearing. And it was.

It was warm and extremely soft. If he were to share it with Belphegor it wou-

No.

Yes.

…

The girl that greeted him earlier wasn't the only one to think of scarves used by two people. Actually, it was what drove Mammon back there.

Earlier he was thinking of what it is that he wanted for the prince. And the first thought that entered his mind was an ordinary winter evening. He and Belphegor were resting near the fireplace at Varia HQ. Both sharing that damned scarf. 'The cold was benefiting them too. As the temperature dropped, they both closed the proximity as they wrapped the scarf even tighter around each other's neck. And afterwards, they fell asleep, the warmth of the fire and their tangled hands granted them one of the best sleep they've ever hard. No matter how sappy or impossible it was, it was actually…convincing. Convincing to the point he had actually bought something like the one in his vision.

Pathetic.

* * *

This was more like it. Thinking about others was definitely Belphegor's style….NOT. As soon as he remembered that, he immediately knew what it was he wanted and what he was going to buy.

A dress.

Oh how he would love to see the arcobaleno in a dress. Not in his baby form though. That would be plain…weird.

The Vongola hosted a semi-formal gathering 3 years ago, and the Varia decided to come. Jokingly, Belphegor asked Mammon if he could be his date. Surprisingly, he agreed. It wasn't a big deal though. The one that did shock him was when Mammon took on a petite form of a lady. Around his age at that time too. He- or she, was wearing a black dress, complimenting her pale skin and small frame. Lussuria managed to torture Mammon and made him "doll up" for the occasion. Boy did he owe Lussuria one for that. Mammon looked stunning. He swore never to do that again though. Maybe because for the entire night, Belphegor kept teasing him.

Maybe if he were to give the illusionist a dress as a gift, he'd wear it. If he won't, convincing him would probably take a good few hours, but he'll eventually give in. How much Bel knew about Mammon scared himself sometimes, but hey, it proved to be useful. Besides, he was sure it was the same thing for Mammon.

The arcobaleno would probably be furious if he bought something too showy or anything not to his liking. Belphegor tried to find one that would still be 'wearable' in accordance to the mist's taste and preference. He had it gift wrapped as soon as he bought the 'right' dress, and headed home, a large grin on his face.

But before he could, his eyes, though hidden, caught glimpse of a woman walking towards the same direction as him. Violet hair with bangs that hid her eyes. And that familiar feel he could sense from the woman's obviously cold aura. It was definitely Mammon. His instincts were never wrong.

The prince ran up to her, a grin still intact. "Shishishi, done shopping, Mammon?"

* * *

Of all the people he could run into, it just had to be him. The supposed receiver of the gift he was carrying right now. Mammon silently cursed as he turned to face the voice that called him. "Muu."

Mammon nodded and observed the prince. It appears as though he too was shopping. Curiosity attacked in a blink of an eye, and he could only wonder to whom he was using his money on other than himself. It contained a branded shopping bag. For clothes. For women.

A girl.

So the prince has found himself a lover for the holidays.

Great.

"And you?" He tried to hide the bitterness in his tone. After all, it was one of those times again. Belphegor would find himself a lover from time to time. All dying in the end, of course. It was suicide to be Bel's lover. Besides, if he wasn't going to kill them, Mammon would be more than willing to do so. They were too…irritating.

"If it's not obvious, yes~" Belphegor grinned even wider as he tried to take a peep at what Mammon was carrying. "So who's that for?"

"For myself." Considering Belphegor already found himself a lover for the time being, the scarf would probably be a stupid gift now. Turns out he was going to make use of the scarf. It was just like his original plan, minus the sharing part. Life really was cruel.

"If you'll excuse me, I'll be on my way now, Prince."

Mammon turned and headed home as quick as can be, ignoring the prince as he matched his pace and attempted to converse. Take a hint, fool, take a hint.

But he could only hope. After all, they've been stuck with each other for as long they could remember, and not once did he ever 'take a hint'.

Perhaps it's fate's way of playing with them.

Nonetheless, Mammon was sure of one thing. Never again will he shop.

Especially for Belphegor.

* * *

Clueless of why Mammon was acting…bitchy, Belphegor continued to start a conversation, continually guessing what it was the illusionist bought for himself.

_Selfish as ever_. He thought.

He expected this. Gifts were never Mammon's thing, but it wasn't his too . Yet here he was, carrying a gift for the said person.

Despite Mammon's extremely cold attitude, Belphegor was certain he was going to like shopping considering he was already imagining his gift-y's reaction. He made a mental note to himself to shop for gifts again.

Especially for Mammon.

* * *

**Word Count: **2,282

**Notes: **BelMamm! :DD This is an old fic that I decided to post :D


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